Chapter 262
DEREK
The crowd had already begun to gather when I arrived.
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The courtyard in front of the new Rogue Foundation was cordoned off with velvet rope and lined with silver–and–navy banners. The city’s emblem flew alongside Moonstone’s and Red Ridge’s on tall flagpoles, and a heavy length of ribbon stretched across the main entrance, fluttering in the late morning breeze.
I spotted Aiden almost instantly.
He was bouncing on the balls of his feet beside Elena, who stood in front of the building like she’d been carved from light and purpose. Jacob stood beside her, his hand at her lower back, leaning close to say something that made her laugh.
I kept my distance.
Aiden had invited me. Personally. Said it wouldn’t be the same without me. Said he wanted me there because it was a big day for his mom, and she deserved everyone important to her around her.
So I came.
But I stayed at the edge of the event, nodding politely at the city officials I recognized–mostly members of the council I’d been lobbying for weeks now. They gave me tight smiles, none of them blowing my cover. Not yet, anyway.
A podium stood at the top of the small stairwell leading to the glass–paneled lobby. Microphones had been fitted along its edge. News crews were here. Reporters. Press lanyards bobbing on every other neck.
Elena was radiant in soft gray, her hair swept back, her makeup understated and elegant. Jacob, of course tailored navy suit that matched the banners.
They looked like a power couple.
They looked right.
My wolf growled low, buried deep in my chest.
It didn’t help when they started speaking.
“It’s not right,” Erebus said.
I couldn’t help but agree.
Jacob stepped up first, flashing the crowd a smile so practiced it looked genuine.
“Thank you all for coming,” he said. “This project began with a vision not mine, but hers.”
He turned to Elena.
e a perfectly
She stepped up beside him. “A vision of a safer future. A more dignified one. For every rogue who ever wondered if they had a place in our world.”
He nodded, continuing, “We knew it wouldn’t be easy.”
“We knew there would be pushback,” Elena added.
“But we also knew something else.”
“That nothing changes until someone dares to try.”
They were passing the sentences back and forth, like a dance. Not rehearsed, but natural. Like they knew how the other thought. Like they had done this before, and would do it again. And again.
Chapter 262
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The pit in my stomach churned.
Jacob gestured to the ribbon. Someone handed them a pair of enormous platinum scissors. Elena took one handle, Jacob the other. They looked at each other, smiling.
“On the count of three,” he said.
“One,” she called.
“Two,” he grinned.
“Three.”
The scissors closed. The ribbon snapped in two.
The crowd clapped and whooped. Aiden jumped up and down, shouting with excitement. Flashbulbs flickered like starlight.
And Elena-
She was beaming.
G
Inside, the reception was already in full swing.
The main floor, which would soon become the rogue community center, had been transformed for the day. Tables draped in white linen. Platters of appetizers, all bite–sized and fancy. A live string quartet played soft classical arrangements near the back
wall.
Soft gold lights twinkled from ceiling fixtures. There were donation cards at each place setting and pamphle Foundation’s mission. All of it was pitch perfect.
And in every detail, I saw her.
The framed photos of smiling faces from the rogue shelters she visited.
The handwritten welcome notes at the info booth.
The subtle lavender scent that was her signature.
She would have made an incredible Luna.
ailing the
I sat in the corner, nursing a sparkling water, pretending I wasn’t watching her every move. She floated through the room with grace, pausing to greet donors, shaking hands, accepting praise. Jacob never strayed far from her side.
Every time he touched her arm, every time he leaned in to whisper something, something inside me cracked further.
“Dad!”
Aiden came barreling toward me like a rocket, already tugging at my sleeve.
“Come on, it’s a party! You look so mopey.”
I tried to smile. “I don’t want to steal your mom’s thunder. This is her moment. I’ll just hang back.”
“Nope,” Aiden said, tugging harder. “Not allowed. You gotta come say hi.”
I sighed, but let him pull me to my feet. His small fingers laced in mine, dragging me forward with a surprising amount of force.
We crossed the floor, weaving between guests.
Elena was standing near one of the city council members, mid–conversation with Jacob. Her posture was relaxed, her laugh light -the kind of social ease that always made her seem so composed, even under pressure. Jacob leaned in just slightly, listening, his arm brushing hers like it was second nature.
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Chapter 262
As Aiden and I stepped closer, the councilman turned.
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Big guy. Burly in the way older wolves sometimes were- like they were still halfway in their prime and didn’t care who knew it. A fat cigar was wedged between his teeth, the tip glowing faintly. He didn’t bother to take it out when he spoke.
His eyes landed on me, and a wide grin split his face. “Well, hell,” he said around the cigar, voice like gravel. “And here I thought our deal was–I give you the votes to approve this venture here,” he waved the cigar in a wide arc toward the polished floors, the gleaming windows, “and I never have to see your face again.”
Elena blinked.
Jacob tilted his head, an eyebrow arching with curiosity.
“What are you talking about?” Elena asked, glancing from the councilman to me, her voice tinged with confusion.
The man chuckled, completely unbothered. He clapped a heavy hand on Jacob’s shoulder like they were old drinking buddies.” Don’t tell me she doesn’t know,” he said, eyebrows raised.
“Your fated mate’s been on me like a damn bloodhound. Calls. Drop–ins. Letters. Had my assistant threatening to quit, he hassled us so much. Damn near put me in an early grave.”
He laughed again, a hoarse, amused bark, and gave Elena a wink before strolling off, puffing the cigar like he hadn’t just dropped a grenade.
Silence fell between the three of us, thick and heavy.
Elena turned toward me, slowly, like she wasn’t sure she’d heard right. Her eyes searched mine. “You did that?” she asked.
I didn’t move.
Didn’t nod. Didn’t speak.
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I just stood there, letting her see it in my face. Because yeah–I did. Every call, every closed–door meeting, every favor I cashed
in to fast–track the permits they needed before anyone could find a reason to stall or block it.
I’d done all of it. Quietly. Without asking for credit. Because it wasn’t about that.
It was about her.
And what she was building.
For the first time in weeks, she looked at me like she didn’t quite know what to say.
Then the words tumbled out of her.
“You were the one who got all our permits pushed through? I thought it was a miracle they were approved so fast, but it was… you?”
